From Sectoral Restorative Justice to Statutory Integration: A Maslahah-Based Safeguard Framework for Victims and Offenders in Indonesia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.70826/jsisnu.v3i2.1950Keywords:
restorative justice, maslahah, victims, offender accountability, criminal procedureAbstract
The incorporation of restorative justice into Indonesia's 2025 Criminal Procedure Code transforms it from a predominantly sectoral policy into a formal mechanism of criminal procedure. Stronger legality, however, does not automatically ensure welfare for victims and offenders. This study examines the post-2025 legal architecture of restorative justice and develops a maslahah-based set of safeguards against coerced reconciliation, marginalisation of victims, and case termination that is detached from genuine restoration. It applies normative legal research through statutory, conceptual, and functional comparative approaches, combining Indonesian law with recent scholarship on victim participation, offender accountability, risk, reparation, and reintegration. The findings show that the new Code regulates case eligibility, voluntariness, forms of restoration, performance of agreements, termination of proceedings, and judicial control, while operational protection and cross-institutional harmonisation remain unfinished. The article proposes a Restorative Maslahah Safeguard Framework consisting of four cumulative gates: legality and case eligibility, voluntariness and victim protection, accountable restoration by the offender, and legal validation with reintegration. Its novelty lies in translating maslahah from an abstract normative aspiration into a procedural test that balances victim restoration, offender responsibility, public interest, and legal certainty. The framework rejects the assumption that every settlement is restorative and treats protection as a condition of legitimate reconciliation.
Downloads
References
Absar, A. A. (2020). Restorative justice in Islam with special reference to the concept of diyya. Journal of Victimology and Victim Justice, 3(1), 38-56. https://doi.org/10.1177/2516606920927277
Akbar, M. F. (2021). Keadilan restoratif dalam sistem peradilan pidana sebagai perwujudan nilai-nilai Pancasila. Justitia et Pax, 37(1). https://doi.org/10.24002/jep.v37i1.3821
Allan, A., de Mott, J., Larkins, I. M., Turnbull, L., Warwick, T., Willett, L., & Allan, M. M. (2022). The impact of voluntariness of apologies on victims' responses in restorative justice: Findings of a quantitative study. Psychiatry, Psychology and Law, 29(4), 593-609. https://doi.org/10.1080/13218719.2021.1956383
Andiko, T., Nurdin, Z., & Efrinaldi. (2024). Implementation of restorative justice in a customary court in Rejang Lebong District, Bengkulu, Indonesia: A maqasid al-shariah review. JURIS (Jurnal Ilmiah Syariah), 23(1), 93-106. https://doi.org/10.31958/juris.v23i1.12008
Attorney General of the Republic of Indonesia. (2020). Prosecutor Regulation No. 15 of 2020 on Termination of Prosecution Based on Restorative Justice.
Auda, J. (2008). Maqasid al-Shariah as philosophy of Islamic law: A systems approach. International Institute of Islamic Thought.
Baihaky, M. R., & Isnawati, M. (2024). Restorative justice: Pemaknaan, problematika, dan penerapan yang seyogianya. Unes Journal of Swara Justisia, 8(2), 276-289. https://doi.org/10.31933/4mqgaj17
Banwell-Moore, R. (2024). Restorative justice: Adopting a whole system approach to address cultural barriers in criminal justice. Criminology & Criminal Justice, 24(5), 1028-1046. https://doi.org/10.1177/17488958241268005
Butler, S., Maglione, G., & Buchan, J. (2024). Institutionalising restorative justice for adults in Scotland: An empirical study of criminal justice practitioners' perspectives. Criminology & Criminal Justice, 24(1), 269-290. https://doi.org/10.1177/17488958221104229
Daly, K. (2016). What is restorative justice? Fresh answers to a vexed question. Victims & Offenders, 11(1), 9-29. https://doi.org/10.1080/15564886.2015.1107797
D'Souza, N., & Shapland, J. (2023). The exclusion of serious and organised offenders and their victims from the offer of restorative justice: Should this be so and what happens when the offer is put on the table? Criminology & Criminal Justice, 23(1), 60-77. https://doi.org/10.1177/17488958211021703
Hafid, I., & Utomo, A. P. (2026). Legal policy for the formulation of implementing regulations on restorative justice in the criminal justice system. Lex Renaissance, 11(1), 28-51. https://doi.org/10.20885/JLR.vol11.iss1.art2
Indonesian National Police. (2021). Police Regulation No. 8 of 2021 on the Handling of Criminal Offences Based on Restorative Justice.
Ismail, D. E., Arsyad, Y., Ahmad, A., Nggilu, N. M., & Chami, Y. (2024). Collocation of restorative justice with human rights in Indonesia. Legality: Jurnal Ilmiah Hukum, 32(2), 394-417. https://doi.org/10.22219/ljih.v32i2.35374
Jonas-van Dijk, J., Zebel, S., Claessen, J., & Nelen, H. (2024). The working mechanisms of the victim-offender mediation process: How might participation explain psychological outcomes in offenders? The International Journal of Restorative Justice. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.5553/TIJRJ.000197
Kamali, M. H. (2008). Maqāṣid al-Sharīʿah made simple. International Institute of Islamic Thought.
Kettrey, H. H., & Reynolds, N. S. (2026). Is restorative justice appropriate for sexual assault and domestic violence? A systematic review and meta-analysis of the 'empirical vacuum'. Journal of Experimental Criminology, 22, 229-247. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11292-024-09651-8
Mohammad, T., & Azman, A. (2021). 'Do I want to face the offender?': Malaysian victims' motivation for participating in restorative justice. Contemporary Justice Review, 24(3), 290-311. https://doi.org/10.1080/10282580.2021.1881892
Mpofu, Z. F., Mkhize, S. M., & Akpan, J. U. (2024). Empathy, remorse, and restoration of dignity contributing to reduced recidivism: Assessing the role of restorative justice in promoting offender rehabilitation and reintegration in Durban. Cogent Social Sciences, 10(1), 2429018. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2024.2429018
Nascimento, A. M., Andrade, J., & Rodrigues, A. C. (2023). The psychological impact of restorative justice practices on victims of crimes: A systematic review. Trauma, Violence, & Abuse, 24(3), 1929-1947. https://doi.org/10.1177/15248380221082085
Olson, J., & Sarver, R. S. (2022). How restorative are you? Introducing the Restorative Index. Victims & Offenders, 17(6), 941-973. https://doi.org/10.1080/15564886.2021.1942358
Permana, Y., Marpaung, W., & Harahap, A. M. (2025). The role of restorative justice in juvenile criminal law Islamic law analysis. Jurnal Akta, 12(1), 85-94. https://doi.org/10.30659/akta.v12i1.43730
Pulungan, M. H., & Situmorang, M. (2026). Restorative justice in the new Criminal Procedure Code: Between legal certainty and law enforcement officer discretion. Jurnal Penelitian Hukum De Jure, 26(1), 45-60. https://doi.org/10.30641/dejure.2026.V26.045-060
Putri, T. K., & Laia, A. (2026). Rekonstruksi pengaturan keadilan restoratif dalam Undang-Undang Nomor 20 Tahun 2025 menuju sistem peradilan berkeadilan. Muhammadiyah Law Review, 10(2).
Republic of Indonesia. (2012). Law No. 11 of 2012 on the Juvenile Criminal Justice System.
Republic of Indonesia. (2023). Law No. 1 of 2023 on the Criminal Code.
Republic of Indonesia. (2025). Law No. 20 of 2025 on the Criminal Procedure Code.
Republic of Indonesia. (2026). Law No. 3 of 2026 on the Protection of Witnesses and Victims.
Robalo, T. L. A. S., & Abdul Rahim, R. B. B. (2023). Cyber victimisation, restorative justice and victim-offender panels. Asian Journal of Criminology, 18(1), 61-74. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11417-023-09396-9
Rossner, M., & Taylor, H. (2024). The transformative potential of restorative justice: What the mainstream can learn from the margins. Annual Review of Criminology, 7, 357-381. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-criminol-030421-040921
Shapland, J., Buchan, J., Kirkwood, S., & Zinsstag, E. (2024a). Creating a people-centred view of risk and restorative justice. Criminology & Criminal Justice, 24(5), 1047-1068. https://doi.org/10.1177/17488958241269018
Shapland, J., Buchan, J., Kirkwood, S., & Zinsstag, E. (2024b). Mitigating risk in restorative justice. The International Journal of Restorative Justice, 7(2), 250-273. https://doi.org/10.5553/TIJRJ.000176
Sliva, S. M., Samimi, C., Han, T. M., & Albright, K. (2024). Effects of victim offender dialogue on mental health and trauma appraisals among victims of violence. Contemporary Justice Review, 27(4), 277-297. https://doi.org/10.1080/10282580.2024.2444905
Sodiqin, A. (2021). Legal, moral, and spiritual dialectics in the Islamic restorative justice system. AHKAM: Jurnal Ilmu Syariah, 21(2). https://doi.org/10.15408/ajis.v21i2.22675
Suparno, S., Rusli, R., & Hidarya, I. (2024). A new restorative justice paradigm in the sociology of Islamic law in Indonesia: Nahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah's responses to corruption cases. Syariah: Jurnal Hukum dan Pemikiran, 24(2), 480-502. https://doi.org/10.18592/sjhp.v24i2.16221
Supreme Court of the Republic of Indonesia. (2024). Supreme Court Regulation No. 1 of 2024 on Guidelines for Adjudicating Criminal Cases Based on Restorative Justice.
van Mastrigt, S., Strang, H., Sherman, L. W., Wellnitz, K. B., & Gade, C. (2025). Victim and offender ratings of mediations and restorative justice conferences: Findings from a Danish randomized controlled trial. Victims & Offenders, 20(8), 1630-1660. https://doi.org/10.1080/15564886.2024.2420284
Wood, W. R., & Suzuki, M. (2024). Getting to accountability in restorative justice. Victims & Offenders, 19(7), 1400-1423. https://doi.org/10.
1080/15564886.2024.2333304
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Jurnal Sahabat ISNU SU
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
